North Adams athletes headed to OHSAA State Meet

By Mark Carpenter

People’s Defender

Last week’s Division III Regional Track Meet, hosted by Heath High School, was decorated by a large number of competitors from the Adams County schools and in this weekend’s OHSAA State Meet, the county will be represented by athletes from North Adams High School. The Devils will be sending three individuals and one relay team to Columbus, looking for the coveted podium positions at the state championships.

That group of state-bound athletes includes a regional champion for North Adams. Junior Beau Hesler outran all the competition in the Boys 800M Run and broke his own school record in the process, turning in a regional time of 1:54.61, putting him squarely in the running as a favorite for a state title. Hesler also advanced to the state meet as one-fourth of the North Adams Boys 4 x 400 relay team, joining teammates Coy Fogle, Ian Raines and Dalton Pence. The quartet placed fourth overall in the regional finals with a time of 3:30.64, good enough to earn a state berth.

“I’m very proud of the accomplishments of my athletes,” said North Adams boys track coach Jeff Raines. “They have all worked hard to get where they are at. I have a 4 x 400 group that is getting better every race and this experience will also make them better. And then of course we have Beau Hesler in the 800. Not many wotk harder than him and it shows that his hard work is paying off.”

Also advancing to the state meet were two individual members of the North Adams girls team. As a freshman, Bella Gray will get a taste of the highest level of competition as she placed fourth at the regional meet in the High Jump, with her best effort of 5’2”. Junior Eden Bosko will join her teammate in Columbus after she finished third overall in the Girls Discus Throw, qualifying for state with a best throw of 118’1”.

At the regional meet, the top eight finishers in the finals of each event earn a podium spot (top four advance to state) and a number of local athletes had that distinction.

Peebles senior Brandon Rayburn climed podium spots in a pair of events in the final meet of an high outstanding high school career. Rayburn placed eighth in the 100M Dash (11.58) and barely missed a state berth in the 300M Dash, finishing fifth in a time of 22.80.

In the Boys800M Run, North Adams junior Dalton Pence made the podium with a sixth place finish in the regional finals, with a time of 2:00.73. The Devils’ Coy Fogle was on the podium after placing seventh in the Boys 300M Hurdles and although he did not qualify for state, he set a new North Adams school record with his time of 41.23.

The Peebles 4 x 100 relay foursome of Elijah Gammon, Damien McCann, Brandon Rayburn and Cooper Meade squeezed on to the podium with a seventh place finish in the finals, crossing the finish in a combined time of 45.88, after breaking the school record in the prelims with atime of 45.63.

After sweeping her three events in the district meet, Manchester senior Madison Dunn could not repeat the performance in the regionals, but did make the podium in two events, placing sixth in the 100M Dash (13.15) and fifth in the 400M (59.92).

The following Adams County athletes competed in the regional finals, but failed to make the podium after fine all-around seasons.

• Kaleb Eldridge, North Adams: Boys Long Jump, 11th place (19’2.5”)

• Caleb DeAtley, North Adams: Boys Discus, 9th Place (135’6”); Boys Shot Put, 15th Place (39’3”)

• Wyatt Smart, Peebles: Boys Discus, 13th Place (119’2”)

• Madelyn Napier, Manchester: Girls 800M Run, 10th Place (2:39.09)

• Anan Armstrong, North Adams: Girls 800M Run, 12th Place (2:45.75)

• Stella Rhonemus, West Union: Girls 3200M run, 13th Place (12:48.71)

For the athletes who qualified for the OHSAA Division III State Meet, the road now leads to Jesse OwensStadium in Columbus on June 6 and 7. The complete schedule of events can be found at https://ohsaaweb.blob.core.windows.net/files/Sports/Track-Field/2025/2025TrackStateMeetSchedule.pdf.